Are Chick-fil-A, Starbucks part of a new plan for East Main Street in Hendersonville?

Andy Humbles, Nashville Tennessean
Updated ·2 min read

A plan to develop three commercial lots on East Main Street in Hendersonville for two "quick serve" restaurants and a medical care facility is moving forward, but with traffic concerns planning commissioners say must be addressed.

A plan submitted for East Main Street in Hendersonville that city officials say would be for a Chick-fil A, Starbucks and Fast Pace Health.
A plan submitted for East Main Street in Hendersonville that city officials say would be for a Chick-fil A, Starbucks and Fast Pace Health.

Chick-fil-A and Starbucks are among the restaurants in discussions to potentially open at the 4.34-acre site located between Maple Row Boulevard and Maple Drive on the south side of East Main, according to city officials and project representatives. Fast Pace Health is also a potential user of one of the three lots.

Planning commissioners did vote to give a rezoning request a positive recommendation to allow for the site to include the quick serve restaurant uses. The rezone request will ultimately need approval by Hendersonville's Board of Mayor and Aldermen with two passing votes.

Project representatives could then seek approval of a site plan if the rezone request is approved.

“I want to make the developer aware that at such time if you are successful with your rezone planned development and you come back for a site plan that we’re going to be looking very closely at theses transportation issues and access,” Planning Director Keith Free said at the planning commission meeting. "We don't want to create a problem."

A representative for the project being called the Alexander Commercial Development stated development representatives are in talks with Chick-fil-A, Starbucks and Fast Pace Health.

There are "contingencies" that property owner Rick Morrow of R&C Enterprises said will determine how the plan moves forward and what decisions are made by business to open at the site as it moves through the approval process.

One variable Morrow expects that will need to be worked through is a new traffic signal, which a project representative told planning commissioners Chick-fil-A will require. Some planning commissioners expressed concern about how a new traffic light signal will fit that portion of Main Street.

The Hendersonville Board of Mayor and Aldermen will ultimately need to approve the rezone application with two passing votes, Free said. The process will begin with the city's planning commission that can provide a non-binding positive or negative recommendation to forward on to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen.

Planning Commissioner Vanessa Silkwood expressed concern about the lot size for the proposed Chick-fil-A and said any traffic backups spilling out to Main Street “would cause quite a problem.”

The site has one residential property on the site between Regions and Simmons banks that will be demolished.

Drive-thru traffic at Chick-fil-A in Hendersonville.
Drive-thru traffic at Chick-fil-A in Hendersonville.

Hendersonville also has a Chick-fil-A open on Glenbrook Way. City planners have been working with Chick-fil-A Glenbrook Way restaurant representatives to reconfigure that parking lot to allow for more vehicle stacking for drive-thru lanes to reduce backup that can spill over onto the roadway.

Reach Andy Humbles at ahumbles@tennessean.com or 615-726-5939 and on Twitter @ AndyHumbles.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Hendersonville officials say Chick-fil-A, Starbucks looking at E. Main